Mouth guard



Jan. 15, 1963 H. H. B-ERGHASH 3,073,300

. MOUTH GUARD F iled March 24, 1961 FIG.4.

IN VEN TOR.

Hyman H. Berghosh BY A TTORNE Y6 United States Patent ffice 3,073,300Patented Jan. 15, 1963 3,073,300 MGUTH GUARD Hyman H. Berghash, Buffalo,N.Y., assignor to Rehcrts Dental Manufacturing (10., Inc., Butfaio,N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Mar. 24, 1961, Ser. No. 98,146 5Qlairns. (Cl. 128-136) This invention relates to mouth guards of theyieldable type which are used by athletes for the protection of teeth,lips and jaws from injury by excessive blows, and more particularly toan improved mouth piece of the type employing a base member of yieldablemoldable material which acts as a trough for confining a secondaryself-molding filler material for achieving an exact lit to the mouth ofthe individual.

ince the athlete is considerably active when wearing a mouth piece ofthis type, it is a basic requirement that the mouth piece be adapted tofit closely the configuration of the extremities of the mouth, such asthe teeth with which it contacts, otherwise the user must constantlykeep his jaws closed to prevent the mouth piece from falling out. Sinceno two people have identical mouth configurations, it is impossible tomass produce mouth pieces which may be adapted for use by many users andprovide the desired close fit. In order to overcome this difficulty,there has been an attempt to achieve individual fitting of a massproduced primary mouth piece member to the user by making use ofstandard size base members which are of such a configuration as to actas a trough for confining a secondary, self-molding filler material.This material hardens about the teeth after the base member and thefiller material have been inserted Within the jaw whereupon the fillermaterial receives the impression of the users upper teeth and gums toefiect a finished article which is integrally molded and achieves thedesired configuration allowing subsequent removal and insertion duringeach athletic contest.

While this method has achieved great success and has provided customfitted mouth guards, it requires the user to bite down rather severelyon the base member of primary materia. Since the material used to formthe mouth piece and especially the base member, must be of resilient oryieldable material, often during a strenuous activity, the user inbiting down during the course of the activity bites through the basemember, thereby allowing the teeth to protrude, to defeat the protectivepurpose of the mouth piece. Since only the front teeth have sharpcutting edges, it is this portion of the cup or base memher which theuser normally bites through.

it is therefore a primary object of this invention to prevent the cup orbase member from being bitten through by the user during the course ofany activity in which a mouth piece is used, in order to protect andcushion the users mouth and teeth from injury.

It is a further object of this invention to prevent the cup or basemember from being bitten through during the formation of the impressionof the users upper teeth and gums within the secondary material duringthe formation of an integral mouth guard of this type.

Other objects of this invention will be pointed out in the followingdetailed description and claims and illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, which disclose, by way of example, the principle of thisinvention and the best mode which has been contemplated of applying thatprinciple.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the primary cup or base member formingthe present invention.

FIG. 2 is a vertical section taken along lines 2-2 of the base member ormouth piece shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged, vertical cross sectional view of the base memberof the mouth piece of the present invention and the integrally moldedsecondary filler.

FIGURE 4 is a top plan view of a woven glass sheet for insertion in thetrough of a mouth piece in accordance with a second embodiment of theinvention.

Briefly, the present invention takes the form of a mouth guard of thetype including a U-shaped base member of yieldable, moldable material,which is adapted to fit between the upper and lower teeth and includesinner and outer retaining walls forming a trough for confining asecondary, self-rnolding filler material which acts to provide an exactfit to the user so that the mouth piece adheres to the upper teeth. Theinvention is directed to the improvement which resides in the provisionof a thickened, integral portion which extends longitudinally of thebase member between and adjacent the retaining walls along the frontalbite portion of the mouth guard to prevent the user from biting throughthe base member during the course of any activity or during the customfitting operation of the secondary filler material.

Referring to H6. 1, there is shown the primary cup or base member 10 ofthe mouth piece, which is formed of yieldable, moldable material whichmay take the form of rubber, but preferably is made of special,tasteless, non-toxic vinyl plastic. The primary body or base member 10is precast and is generally U-shaped in configuration having a frontalbite portion 12, and a pair of leg portions 14 extending rearwardlythereof. In FIG. 2 which shows a portion of the base member, it is seenthat the base member 10 includes a bottom wall 16, an inner retainingwall 18 and an outer retaining wall 20 acting to form a trough forconfining a secondary selfmolding filler material to achieve a customfit in a con ventional manner. When positioned in the mouth, the primarybody or the base member is adapted to be disposed in the cusps of theupper and lower teeth with the bottom 16 disposed between these teeth.

In order to effect a custom fit, the base member 10 is filled with asecondary filler material 22 which consists of a rubber base materialwhich is fusable at a low temperature and may take the form of a fluidwhich may be made up at the will of the user. For instance, a suitablemixture of liquid and powder to form the desired filler may be made justbefore the impression is to be taken. In one form, the liquid is amethyl methacrylate monomer and the powder, or polymer, is a combinationof soft acrylates, ethyl and butyl. After mixing of the powder andliquid according to suitable directions, the user places a suificientamount of the filler within the trough formed by the side walls andbottom of the base member and then places the base member within themouth between the cusps in the aforementioned manner to effect a customfit.

The present invention is directed to the means for preventing the userfrom biting through the bottom wall 16 of the base member 10 during use.The front of the U-shaped base member 10 in effect forms a frontal biteportion 12 of the mouth guard. It is the frontal teeth of the user whichare beveled and are the sharpest of the teeth found in the users mouth,and they also protrude such that the upper and lower frontal teethattempt contact when the user bites down on the base member through thefiller material 22 during the custom molding opera tion. Since the basemember 10 is formed of relatively soft, yieldable material, the user inmany cases presses too hard upon the base member 10 with the result thatthe frontal teeth bite completely through the bottom wall 16 and thusdestroy the protective effect of the molded tooth guard.

In order to prevent the user from biting through the bottom wall 16, thebase portion 10, FIG. 1, includes in the preferred embodiment, a centrallongitudinally extending, integral rib 26 which acts to form a thickenedportion centrally of the bite area 12, the longitudinal rib 26 extendsthe full distance of the frontal bite area 12 and the bottom wall 16 mayalso include a plurality of transverse ribs 23 which extend from theinner wall 13 to the outer Wall 20 above the bottom wall surface and actin conjunction with the longitudinal rib 26 to prevent the user frombiting through the bottom wall 16.

The base member is provided, at least along the bottom Walls, with aplurality of upstanding pips or tabs 24, located within the legs 14 ofthe base member and between the side walls 18 and 20.

The ribs 26 and 28 and pips 24 prevent the user from biting down to theflat surface 16 of base member during fitting, so that the pips and ribsallow a layer of the filler material to remain between the teeth and thebase member after fitting. This layer of filler material acts to provideadded protection and cushioning from shock when the mouth piece is inuse. The layer of filler material and the ribs and pips also prevent theuser from biting through the base member 10. Moreover, the ribs 26 and28 and pips 24 themselves act as shock absorbers to protect the mouth ofthe user.

While in the preferred embodiment, the longitudinal rib 26 and thetransverse ribs 28 are formed integrally only throughout the frontalbite portion 12 of the base member 10, this configuration may extendcompletely along the bottom wall 16 and may replace the upstanding pips24 if desired.

Since it is the purpose of the reinforced or thickened area within thefrontal bite portion 12 to prevent the user from biting through thebottom wall of the base member and to allow a cushioning layer of fillermaterial to be formed between the teeth of the user and the base member19, in an alternative embodiment, it may be desirous to provide insteadof or supplemental to the longitudinal and transverse ribs 26 and 28, aseparate reinforcing member which will not in any way interfere with thenormal molding operation and will not prevent the filler material 22from anchoring itself to the inner walls of the base member 10. FIG. 4shows a relatively thin, generally U-shaped cloth element 30 which is ofslightly less longitudinal length and Width than the trough formed bythe base wall 16 and the side walls 18 and 20 of the base member 10. Thecloth is formed of glass fibers of open mesh which will allow the fillermaterial to flow therethrough so as to integrally mold itself with theprecast cup or base member 10. In this embodiment, it is merelynecessary to lay the woven glass sheet 30 within the trough prior tointroducing the filler, and the glass sheet will prevent the user frombiting through the relatively soft base member 10 in the same manner asthe integrally formed ribs 26 and 28 and will enable a cushioning layerof filler material to form in the interstices thereof. The cloth 30 mayextend throughout the troughened base member as shown or only along thefrontal bite portion 12 as desired.

While there have been shown and described and pointed out thefundamental novel features of the invention as applied to the preferredembodiments, it will be understood that various omissions andsubstitutions and changes in the form and details of the deviceillustrated and in its operation may be made by those skilled in the artwithout departing from the spirit of the invention. It is the intention,therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the followingclaims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a tooth guard and jaw protector of the type including a U-shapedbase member of yieldable, moldable material, including a frontal biteportion and rearwardly directed leg portions adapted to fit between theupper and lower teeth, and having inner and outer retaining walls actingas a trough for confining a secondary self-molding filler material, theimprovement comprising the provision of a thickened, unbroken, integralridge located centrally of said inner and outer retaining Walls withinsaid trough and running longitudinally thereof across the entire frontalbite portion to enable a cushioning layer of filler material to beformed between the users teeth and the base member during fitting toprevent the user from biting through the base member during use of thetooth guard and protector.

2. The device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said longitudinal ridgeextends the length of said frontal bite portion and terminates at thepoint where the rearwardly directed legs join the frontal bite portion.

3. The device as claimed in claim 2 further including a plurality ofspaced, integrally formed transverse ridges rising above the bottomsurface of said trough within said frontal bite portion and intersectingsaid longitudinal ridge.

4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 3 further including a plurality ofupstanding tabs formed integrally with and rising above the bottom wallof said trough within said rearwardly directed leg portions of saidU-shaped base member.

5. In a tooth guard and jaw protector of the type including a U-shapedbase member of yieldable, moldable material, including a frontal biteportion and rearwardly directed leg portions adapted to fit between theupper and lower teeth, and having inner and outer retaining walls actingas a trough for confining a secondary self-molding filler material, theimprovement comprising the provision of a plurality of spaced integrallyformed elongated ridges extending transversely across the trough fromthe inner retaining wall to the outer retaining wall and rising abovethe surface of said trough Within said frontal bite portion to enable acushioning layer of filler material to be formed between the users teethand the base member during fitting to prevent the user from bitingthrough the base member during use of the tooth guard and protector.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,302,004 Brown Apr. 29, 1919 2,793,436 Gotlib May 28, 1957 2,827,899Altieri Mar. 25, 1958 2,966,908 Cathcart Jan. 3, 1961

1. IN A TOOTH GUARD AND JAW PROTECTOR OF THE TYPE INCLUDING A U-SHAPED BASE MEMBER OF YIELDABLE, MOLDABLE MATERIAL, INCLUDING A FRONTAL BITE PORTION AND REARWARDLY DIRECTED LEG PORTIONS ADAPTED TO FIT BETWEEN THE UPPER AND LOWER TEETH, AND HAVING INNER AND OUTER RETAINING WALLS ACTING AS A TROUGH FOR CONFINING A SECONDARY SELF-MOLDING FILLER MATERIAL, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING THE PROVISION OF A THICKENED, UNBROKEN INTEGRAL RIDGE LOCATED CENTRALLY OF SAID INNER AND OUTER RETAINING WALLS WITHIN SAID TROUGH AND RUNNING LONGITUDINALLY THEREOF ACROSS THE ENTIRE FRONTAL BITE PORTION TO ENABLE A CUSHIONING LAYER OF FILLER MATERIAL TO BE FORMED BETWEEN THE USER''S TEETH AND THE BASE MEMBER DURING FITTING TO PREVENT THE USER FROM BITING THROUGH THE BASE MEMBER DURING USE OF THE TOOTH GUARD AND PROTECTOR. 